Euthanasia in the United States of America

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Západočeská univerzita v Plzni Fakulta filozofická

Bakalářská práce

Euthanasia in the United States of America

Markéta Hedvika Malá

Plzeň 2017

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Západočeská univerzita v Plzni Fakulta filozofická

Katedra anglického jazyka a literatury

Studijní program Filologie

Studijní obor Cizí jazyky pro komerční praxi Kombinace angličtina – francouzština

Bakalářská práce

Euthanasia in the United States of America Eutanazie ve Spojených státech Amerických

Markéta Hedvika Malá

Vedoucí práce:

Ing. et BcA. Milan Kohout

Katedra anglického jazyka a literatury

Fakulta filozofická Západočeské univerzity v Plzni

Plzeň 2017

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Prohlašuji, že jsem práci zpracovala samostatně a použila jen uvedených pramenů a literatury.

Plzeň, duben 2017 ………

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Poděkování

Chtěla bych poděkovat panu Ing. et BcA. Milanu Kohoutovi za odborné vedení práce a cenné rady, které mi pomohly tuto práci zkompletovat.

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O

^BSAH

2 INTRODUCTION ...-6-

3 EUTHANASIA ...-7-

3.1 WORD MEANING ...-7-

3.2 TYPES OF EUTHANASIA ...-7-

3.3 BRIEF HISTORY ...-9-

4 EUTHANASIA IN THE UNITED STATES ...-10-

4.1 HISTORY OF EUTHANASIA IN THE UNITED STATES ...-10-

4.2 PUBLIC OPINION ON EUTHANASIA IN USA ...-12-

4.3 ASSISTED SUICIDE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ...-13-

4.4 JURISDICTIONS WHERE AID IN DYING IS AUTHORIZED ...-14-

5 DOCTOR DEATH ...-16-

5.1 JACK KEVORKIAN’S LIFE ...-16-

5.2 BRIEF OVERVIEW OF MAIN JACK KEVORKIAN’S PATIENTS ...-19-

6 EUTHANASIA AND RELIGION ...-21-

6.1 RELIGION ...-21-

6.2 JUDAISM AND EUTHANASIA ...-21-

6.3 BUDDHISM AND EUTHANASIA ...-23-

6.4 CHRISTIANITY AND EUTHANASIA ...-25-

6.5 ISLAM AND EUTHANASIA ...-28-

6.6 SUMMARY ...-30-

7 CZECH PUBLIC OPINION ON EUTHANASIA ...-31-

7.1 TARGET AND METHODS OF SURVEY ...-31-

7.2 SURVEY RESULTS ...-32-

7.3 THE ANSWERS OF CHRISTIANS ...-46-

7.4 EVALUATION ...-48-

8 CONCLUSION ...-49-

9 ABSTRACT ...-50-

10 R^ESUMÉ ...-51-

11 BIBLIOGRAPHY ...-52-

12 A^PPENDICES ...-54-

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1 I

NTRODUCTION

Euthanasia is a common theme. Every person can hear it on the TV, in the radio, read it in newspaper. People have different opinions. It can be caused by religion, by different mentality or by nationality. Every state assumes a different attitude to this theme. Different opinions could also have people with their own experience. Some people have an experience with a terminally ill relative. This experience is very fundamental and it can change people’s mind. This topic is chosen also because of my own experience. The whole issue of euthanasia is neither facile nor unequivocal.

Everyone hope that their life will be happy and peaceful and then they will just die. Not everyone have this good fortune. Certainly, some people are strong they are ready to fighting for their lives and they can defeat a disease, but there are also people who would embrace the option of euthanasia to alleviate their suffering.

This bachelor thesis is concentrated on euthanasia in the United States of America and also on diverse opinions of different people.

The theoretical part is composed of professional literature. In the introduction, the reader is acquainted with the basic terms of euthanasia and with a brief history of euthanasia in the world. The next chapter refers to euthanasia in the United States of America. The reader is acquainted with a history and with major landmarks. The next chapter informs the reader about the topic of euthanasia and religion. Here, we can encounter with diverse opinions in every religion. We can determine that no religion support euthanasia.

Within the practical part of my bachelor thesis was approached the public with the target to ascertain the opinion on euthanasia. I created an electronic questionnaire, which was widespread among my vicinity. The questionnaire contains 14 question. The answers of respondents are analysed and showed in a graphs. The questionnaire is enclosed in Appendix.

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2 E

^UTHANASIA

2.1 W

ORD MEANING

The term Euthanasia originates from the Greek word “euthanasia”, which originally means good or beautiful death.¹ Nowadays, the word euthanasia means death on request. However, for each person this word means something else. Someone can imagine murder, someone can imagine mercy.

“The term euthanasia was used by the historian Suetonius to describe how the emperor Augustus died quickly and without suffering in his wife’s arms. In the seventeenth century, Francis Bacon was the first to use the word euthanasia in a medical context to describe an easy, happy, and painless death.”²

2.2 T

YPES OF EUTHANASIA

“To begin with, different forms of euthanasia have been classified in many different ways based on the way it is administrated and who makes the decision.”³

 Active euthanasia

“Active euthanasia involves doing something to cause the patient’s death. For instance, it could happen by using lethal injection in order to terminate someone’s suffering and life.”⁴ This active euthanasia is legalized in Netherland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Columbia.⁵

1 LOUČKA, Martin, Štěpán ŠPINKA a Martina ŠPINKOVÁ. Eutanazie: víme, o čem mluvíme?. 2., přepracované vydání. Praha: Cesta domů, 2015. ISBN 978-80-88126-08-9, p.9

2 BASRI, Zakyah. Euthanasia: Which "M" is it? Mercy or Murder?. USA: AuthorHouse, 2012. ISBN 978-1-4678-8325-2, p.5

5 LOUČKA, Martin, Štěpán ŠPINKA a Martina ŠPINKOVÁ. Eutanazie: víme, o čem mluvíme?. 2., přepracované vydání. Praha: Cesta domů, 2015. ISBN 978-80-88126-08-9, p.21

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 Passive euthanasia

“Passive euthanasia means withholding an important treatment or procedure that might keep the patient alive. Examples include withholding dialysis from patients with terminal-stage renal failure or withholding chemotherapy from cancer patient.”⁶

Passive euthanasia is legalized in several countries, namely in Denmark (since 1998), Finland, France (since 2005), India (since 2011), Ireland, Italy, Columbia, Mexico (since 2008) and Germany. ⁷

 Assisted suicide

Assisted suicide is a suicide committed by someone with assistance from another person.⁸

Assisted suicide is legalized in several US’s states, namely in Oregon, Washington, Vermont and California. ⁹

Assisted suicide is also tolerated in Switzerland (since 1942). Switzerland is also the only country, where the assisted suicide may be executed to a citizen from another country. So you do not have to be the inhabitant of Switzerland. A lot people arrive to the country with this purpose. Since 2016 assisted suicide is also legalized in Canada.¹⁰

“The latest research done by the National Centre for Social Research shows that eight out of ten of people support a change in the law to allow doctors to help patients who are terminally ill and want to end their lives.”¹¹

7 LOUČKA, Martin, Štěpán ŠPINKA a Martina ŠPINKOVÁ. Eutanazie: víme, o čem mluvíme?. 2., přepracované vydání. Praha: Cesta domů, 2015. ISBN 978-80-88126-08-9, p. 23

8 BASRI, Zakyah. Euthanasia: Which "M" is it? Mercy or Murder?. USA: AuthorHouse, 2012. ISBN 978-1-4678-8325-2, p. 12

9 LOUČKA, Martin, Štěpán ŠPINKA a Martina ŠPINKOVÁ. Eutanazie: víme, o čem mluvíme?. 2., přepracované vydání. Praha: Cesta domů, 2015. ISBN 978-80-88126-08-9, p.. 22

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2.3 B

RIEF HISTORY

In 1870 Samuel Williams, who was the first person who proposes the idea of using anaesthetics and morphine to deliberately end a patient’s life. Then, euthanasia was a highly discussed topic in the United States and in Britain.¹²

 1935 – Establishment of the Euthanasia Society of England to support Euthanasia¹³

 1939 – Establishment of a euthanasia program in Germany¹⁴

“In the beginning it was focused on new-borns and young children who showed signs of mental retardation, physical anomalies, or other symptoms, but later on it expanded to include the old, the terminally ill and hopeless cases.”¹⁵

 “In 1995, Australia’s Northern Territory passed a bill that legalized euthanasia, but it was changed in 1997 by the Australian Parliament.”¹⁶

 “In 1998 the state of Oregon legalized assisted suicide, and after that in 2000, the Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalize euthanasia.”¹⁷

 In 2002 Belgium became the second country in the world to legalize euthanasia.¹⁸

 In 2015 was legalized the euthanasia for children in Belgium.¹⁹

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3 E

UTHANASIA IN THE

U

^NITED

S

^TATES

Euthanasia is illegal in the most states of the United States. Assisted suicide and Physician aid in Dying is legal in Washington DC, California, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont and Washington and it is disputed in Montana.²⁰

Physician aid in Dying

“Physician aid-in-dying (PAD) refers to a practice in which a physician provides a competent, terminally ill patient with a prescription for a lethal dose of medication, upon the patient's request, which the patient intends to use to end his or her own life.”²¹

3.1 H

ISTORY OF EUTHANASIA IN THE

U

NITED

S

TATES

History began in 1906, in Ohio, where was proposed the legalisation of euthanasia. The bill was ultimately defeated. Euthanasia advocacy in the U.S. peaked again during the 1930s and diminished during and after World War II. Euthanasia efforts increased during the 1960s and 1970s, under the right-to-die rubric, physician assisted death in liberal bioethics, and through advance directives and do not resuscitate orders. Several major court cases advanced the legal rights of patients, or their guardians, to practice voluntary passive euthanasia or physician assisted death. For example these cases: the Karen Ann Quinlan case (1976), Brophy and Nancy Cruzan cases.²²

Karen Ann Quinlan case

“It was a landmark 1975 court case in the United States in which the parents of a woman who was kept alive by artificial means were allowed to order her removal from artificial ventilation.”

20 Assisted suicide is now legal in Colorado: Six states in the US now allow assisted suicide. The Verge [online]. [accessed 2017-03-15]. http://www.theverge.com/2016/11/8/13520908/assisted-suicide- colorado-death-dignity-right-die-election-2016

21 Physician Aid-in-Dying. ETHICS IN MEDICINE University of Washington School of Medicine [online]. [accessed 2017-03-15]. https://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pad.html 22Euthanasia in the United States. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA):

Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [accessed 2017-03-17].

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_in_the_United_States

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Karen Ann Quinlan was 21 years old in 1975. After a night of drinking alcohol and ingesting tranquilizers, Quinlan passed out and ceased breathing for two 15-minute periods. After it was determined that she was in a persistent vegetative state, her father wished to remove her from the medical ventilator. Quinlan's primary physician and the hospital both refused.²³

Nancy Cruzan case

“It was a landmark United States Supreme Court case involving a young adult incompetent. The first "right to die" case ever heard by the Court, Cruzan was argued on December 6, 1989 and decided on June 25, 1990. In a 5–4 decision, the Court affirmed the earlier ruling of the Supreme Court of Missouri and ruled in favour of the State of Missouri, finding it was acceptable to require "clear and convincing evidence" of a patient's wishes for removal of life support. A significant outcome of the case was the creation of advance health directives.”²⁴

Afterwards, other cases were: Washington V. Glucksberg (1997) and the Terri Schiavo case.²⁵

Washington V. Glucksberg case

“It was a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously held that a right to assistance in committing suicide was not protected by the Due Process Clause.”²⁶

Terri Schiavo case

23 Court and the End of Life - The Right To Privacy: Karen Ann Quinlan: supreme medical respirator jersey. Library Index [online]. [accessed 2017-03-15]. https://www.libraryindex.com/pages/582/Court- End-Life-RIGHT-PRIVACY-KAREN-ANN-QUINLAN.html

24 Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [accessed 2017-03-17].

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruzan_v._Director,_Missouri_Department_of_Health

25 Euthanasia in the United States. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA):

26 Washington v. Glucksberg. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_v._Glucksberg

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“The Terri Schiavo case was a right-to-die legal case in the United States from 1990 to 2005, involving Theresa Marie "Terri" Schiavo, a woman in an irreversible persistent vegetative state. Schiavo's husband and legal guardian argued that Schiavo would not have wanted prolonged artificial life support without the prospect of recovery, and elected to remove her feeding tube.”²⁷

3.2 P

UBLIC OPINION ON EUTHANASIA IN

USA

Reflecting the religious and cultural diversity of the United States, there is a wide range of public opinion about euthanasia. During the past 30 years, research showed that opinions on euthanasia have a tendency to correlate with religious affiliation and culture, though not gender.²⁸

Opinion by race and gender

Recent studies showed that white Americans are more for the legalization of euthanasia than black Americans. Black Americans are almost 3 times more opposed to euthanasia than white Americans. Some speculate that this discrepancy is because of the low level of trust in the medical establishment. One study also found out that there are disparities in the medical treatment and pain management that white Americans and other Americans receive. ²⁹³⁰³¹

Among black Americans, education relate with the support for euthanasia. Black Americans without a four-year degree are twice opposed to euthanasia than those with at least that much education. Some researchers suggest that black Americans have a

27 Terri Schiavo case. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [accessed 2017-03-17]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terri_Schiavo_case

28 Euthanasia in the United States. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA):

29Euthanasia in the United States. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_in_the_United_Stateson end-of-life care and decisions. The American Behavioral Scientist; Oct 2002; 46, 2; pp. 204-219.

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tendency to be more religious. Only black and white Americans have been studied in extensive detail. A recent Gallup Poll showed that 84% of males supported euthanasia compared to 64% of females. Some studies showed that women have a higher level of religiosity and moral conservatism as an explanation. Within both sexes, there are differences in attitudes towards euthanasia due to other influences. For example, one study found that black American women are 2 times more opposed to euthanasia than white American women. Black American men are 3 times opposed to euthanasia than white American men. ³²

Euthanasia is a discussed topic. Against it, euthanasia is still in the United States illegal. Maybe it will change in the future. At least, assisted suicide is legal in several states.

3.3 A

SSISTED SUICIDE IN THE

U

NITED

S

TATES OF

A

MERICA

The first significant to legalize the assisted suicide in the United States of America was in the twentieth century. In a 2004 article in the Bulletin of the History of Medicine, Brown University historian Jacob M. Appel wrote about debate over legislation to legalize physician-assisted death in both Iowa and about Ohio in 1906. In Ohio, the legislation was inspired by the case of Anna S. Hall. Her mother suffered from cancer. However, the bill was rejected by the Ohio legislature by the vote of 79 to 23.³³

Washington v. Glucksberg

It was a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that a right to assistance in committing suicide was not protected by the Due Process Clause.³⁴

33 Assisted suicide in the United States. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [accessed 2017-03-19].

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assisted_suicide_in_the_United_States

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- 14 - Dr Jack Kevorkian

Dr Jack Kevorkian was the main person in all history of euthanasia in the United States. He was a doctor, pathologist. His first public assisted Suicide was in 1990.³⁵

Brittany Maynard

Brittany Maynard was an advocate for the legalization of medical aid in dying.

She suffered from terminal brain cancer. This case led to renewed the debate about legalisation of assisted suicide. ³⁶

3.4 J

URISDICTIONS WHERE AID IN DYING IS AUTHORIZED

California

In 1992, the group of Californians proposed the Proposition 161 for patients with less than 6 months to live. This proposal was the right to receive assistance from physicians in dying. This measure failed to pass with 46 percent of the vote. The California legislature passed a bill legalizing the practise in 2015. The bill was signed by Governor Jerry Brown. California is the fifth state to authorize medical aid in dying.

The law came into effect in June 2016.³⁷³⁸

37 ANNAS, G. (1994). "Death by Prescription. The Oregon Initiative". The New England Journal of Medicine. 331 (18): 1240–1243

38 Gov. Brown signs bill legalizing medically-assisted suicide for terminal patients. In: Fox 5 [online].

[accessed 2017-03-19]. http://fox5sandiego.com/2015/10/05/gov-brown-signs-bill-legalizing-medically- assisted-suicide-for-terminal-patients/

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- 15 - District of Columbia

January 2015 – D.C. Council member Mary Cheh introduced Death with Dignity Act of 2015.

October 2015 - Committee on Health and Human Services voted 3 votes to 2 for the Death with Dignity Act of 2015.

November 2016 - The D.C. Council voted for the Death with Dignity Act of 2015 with 11 votes to 2.

After Mayor Bowser's signature on 23rd December, 2016 and after the mandatory 30 day Congress review, the law came into full effect on February 18, 2017.

Montana

AID is legal in Montana because of the state Supreme Court decision. The Montana Supreme Court ruled by 5 votes to 2 that state law allows for terminally ill patients to request lethal medication from a physician under existing statutes.³⁹

Oregon

In 1994, Oregon voters as first approved the Death with Dignity Act by the general election by a margin of 51% to 49%. The law came into effect in October 1997.

Terminally ill patients with less than 6 months to live can receive a prescription for lethal drugs.⁴⁰

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4 D

^OCTOR

D

^EATH

This chapter of my bachelor thesis is about Doctor Death. He was the main person in all history of euthanasia. Doctor death was a promoter of euthanasia. He is very famous in the US. Many people called him killer. It is just because that they do not agree with euthanasia and with his suggestions. He was accused of murder several times and spent many years in prison. There are not only dissenters. Doctor Death had a lot of supporters and still has.

4.1 J

ACK

K

EVORKIAN

’

S LIFE

His real name was Jacob “Jack” Kevorkian. He was born on May 26, 1928 in Pontiac (Michigan, USA). ⁴¹

Jack Kevorkian was obsessed with death and dying. It is maybe because his parents were Armenians, who escaped the genocide, because of their running away to America. During the World War I, when the genocide took place, Turks wiped out more than million Armenians. He said: “I wish my forefathers went through what the Jews did. The Jews were gassed. Armenians were killed in every conceivable way. Pregnant women were split open with bayonets and babies taken out. They were drowned, burned, heads were smashed in vices. They were chopped in half.⁴²

In 1958, he created his first major stir. He published an article about changes occurring in the human eye at the time of death. That time he worked as a pathologist in Detroit and examined the dying patient at nights, precisely their eyes. Already at that time he gained his nickname Doctor Death. Examination of dead eyes had a rational basis. Jack Kevorkian established that doctors can identify if the patient is already died, to distinguish it from a coma and avoid unnecessary resuscitation. However, later he said about this research that it was very interesting and that was the main point. The other point was that this was a taboo topic. ⁴³

In 1987, Kevorkian started advertising in Detroit newspapers as a physician consultant for "death consultancy". In that time, euthanasia was his main theme. He propagated the idea of creation the special clinics. These clinics could be for persons

41 Jack Kevorkian. Reflex. 2007, 2007.

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who want to end their lives and also could be a site for experimentation with dying persons or removing organs for transplantation. It means that people could die according to their wish and they could also help other people.⁴⁴

At the beginning, there was no answer to the advertising. However, Kevorkian became very popular for media. That resulted in the interest of patients. They wanted his consultancy. Jack Kevorkian was ready. He constructed an apparatus from old components, which he gathered in a garage or at a flea market. This apparatus got a name Thanatron. His first patient was Janet Adkins. ⁴⁵

According to Jack’s lawyer, Jack helped more than 130 patients with their death.

He was in court several times, but always acquitted. He had to replace Thanatron by another apparatus, because he had his medical licence revoked. He didn’t have access to deadly poisons anymore. Therefore, he invited a new apparatus - Mercitron (mercy machine). Mercitron used gas. On 17 November 1998 he deviated from his previous practice. He applied the lethal injection to Thomas Youk. Jack had Thomas’s written consent and he could film the whole event. Then he gave it into TV show. During that event, Jack Kevorkian called on the authorities to condemn him and stop him, or legalize his activities. He was judged and condemned of second-degree murder.⁴⁶

He spent 8 years in prison. He was released from prison for health reasons on condition that he will never provide advice or otherwise participate in any suicide, including euthanasia. ⁴⁷

Jack Kevorkian died on June 3, 2011 in Royal Oak, Michigan. Doctor Jack Kevorkian created 2 new terms.⁴⁸

The first one is medicide. Approach to Jack Kevorkian it means a suicide with assistance, concretely with a doctor. This term is created the same way as word suicide.

48 Jack Kevorkian. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [accessed 2017-03-24]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Kevorkian

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Etymologically it is a word composed of 2 another words. Med (in Latin éri) which means to treat and –cid (originally ceadere) which means to cut, to kill.⁴⁹

The second term is obitriatry. It is a medical discipline that cares about peaceful dying. The doctor who cares about these patients is called obitiatrist. It is also a Latin word (obitus) which means dead. ⁵⁰

Thanatron

Invented by Jack Kevorkian, to use this device and called it a thanatron or death machine after the Greek daemon, Thanatos. It worked by pushing a button to deliver the euthanizing drugs mechanically through an IV (Intravenous therapy). It had three canisters mounted on a metal frame. Each bottle had a syringe that connected to a single IV line in the person's arm. One contained saline, another contained a sleep- inducing barbiturate called sodium thiopental and the third a lethal mixture of potassium chloride, which immediately stopped the heart, and pancuronium bromide, a paralytic medication to prevent spasms during the dying process. Two deaths were assisted with this method.⁵¹

Mercitron (mercy machine)

“Kevorkian assisted others with a device that employed a gas mask fed by a canister of carbon monoxide which was called Mercitron. This became necessary because Kevorkian's medical license had been revoked after the first two deaths, and he could no longer have legal access to the substances required for the Thanatron. It was a rudimentary device consisting of a canister of carbon monoxide attached to a face mask with a tube. A valve must be released to start the gas flowing. Depending on the person's disability, a makeshift handle may be attached to the valve to make it easier to turn. Or, with the valve in the "open" position, a clip or clothespin could be clamped on

49 BROVINS, Joan M. a Thomas H. OEHMKE. Vražda, nebo milosrdenství?: Dr. Smrt : [důvěrná zpráva o radikálním propagátorovi a praktikovi eutanazie]. Praha: Brána, 1996. ISBN 80-859-4645-9.

50 BROVINS, Joan M. a Thomas H. OEHMKE. Vražda, nebo milosrdenství?: Dr. Smrt : [důvěrná zpráva o radikálním propagátorovi a praktikovi eutanazie]. Praha: Brána, 1996. ISBN 80-859-4645-9.

51 Euthanasia device. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [ accessed 2017-03-24]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_device#Mercitron

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the tubing. Pulling it off allows the gas to flow. By Kevorkian's estimates, this method took 10 minutes or longer. Sometimes he encouraged people to take sedatives or muscle relaxants to keep them calm as they breathed deeply of the gas.”⁵²

4.2 B

RIEF OVERVIEW OF MAIN

J

ACK

K

EVORKIAN

’

S PATIENTS

Janet Adkins

She was 54 years old, from Portland, Oregon. She suffered from Alzheimer disease. Her life was terminated on 4 June 1990 by intravenous injection. Jack was accused of murder.⁵³

Virginia Harper

69 years old, from Loomis, California. She had a cancer. She swallowed sleeping pills. Jack did not help her. She came to Michigan in faith that assisted suicide is legalized here. Her husband was accused of murder.⁵⁴

Sherry Miller

43 years old, from Roseville, Michigan. She suffered from multiple sclerosis.⁵⁵ Marjoria Wantz

56 years old, from Sodus, Michigan. She suffered from pelvic pain.⁵⁶

Sherry and Marjoria died on the same day on 23 October 1993. Sherry inhaled carbon monoxide, meanwhile Marjoria decided to die by intravenous injection. Jack was accused of murder again.⁵⁷

52 Euthanasia device. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia [online]. San Francisco (CA): Wikimedia Foundation, 2001- [ accessed 2017-03-24]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_device#Mercitron

53 BROVINS, Joan M. a Thomas H. OEHMKE. Vražda, nebo milosrdenství?: Dr. Smrt : [důvěrná zpráva o radikálním propagátorovi a praktikovi eutanazie]. Praha: Brána, 1996. ISBN 80-859-4645-9, p.9

54 BROVINS, Joan M. a Thomas H. OEHMKE. Vražda, nebo milosrdenství?: Dr. Smrt : [důvěrná zpráva o radikálním propagátorovi a praktikovi eutanazie]. Praha: Brána, 1996. ISBN 80-859-4645-9, p.9

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- 20 - Katie Roberts

30 years old, from Mount Pleasant, Michigan. She suffered from multiple sclerosis. She committed a suicide by taking arsenic on 23 May 1919. This poison procured her husband and he was condemned to life imprisonment. Jack decided to peruse this case in connection with his accusation.⁵⁸

Kevin Bashnaw

20 years old, from Port Huron, Michigan. He suffered by depressions. He shot himself by ranged weapon, which procured him Steven Campbell. It happened on 3 October 1980. Although Steven Campbell encouraged him to shot himself, he was acquitted. The reason was that the assistance with suicide is not a crime. Dr Kevorkian used Steven Campbell’s case in his defense. ⁵⁹

Susan Williams

52 years old, from Clawson, Michigan. She suffered from multiple sclerosis. She committed a suicide by inhalation of carbon monoxide on 25 May 1992. Her death was qualified as a homicide (a murder). Jack was never accused from a murder, although he was present at this suicide.⁶⁰

Lois F. Hawes

52 years old, from Warren, Michigan. She had a cancer and she committed a suicide by inhalation of carbon monoxide on 26 September 1992. Jack was present at this suicide, but he was never accused.⁶¹

In 1992, Jack is accused from a murder because of his present at the suicide of Marjoria Wantz and Sherry Miller. His lawyer proved Jack’s innocence and the accusation was cancelled. ⁶²

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5 E

UTHANASIA AND RELIGION

5.1 R

ELIGION

“Religion is the set of beliefs, feelings, dogmas and practices that define the relations between human being and sacred or divinity. A given religion is defined by specific elements of a community of believers: dogmas, sacred books, rites, worship, sacrament, moral prescription, interdicts and organisation. The majority of religions have developed starting from a revelation based on the exemplary history of a nation, of a prophet or a wise man who taught an ideal of life.”⁶³

“A religion may be defined with its three great characteristics: Believes and religious practices; the religious feeling i.e. faith; unity in a community of those who share the same faith: the Church. It is what differentiates religion from magic.”⁶⁴

“The study of disappeared or existing religions shows the universal character of this phenomenon and a very large variety in the ritual doctrines and practices.

One generally distinguishes the religions called primitive or animists, the Oriental religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism, Confucianism, Taoism...) and the religions monotheists derived from the Bible (Judaism, Christianity, Islam). Christianity has itself given birth to several religions or Christian Churches (Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelic...)”⁶⁵

5.2 J

UDAISM AND EUTHANASIA

Judaism arose in the second millennium before Christ. It is a monotheistic religion. According to Judaism, God originated the world and the world gave him the Testament – Torah. ⁶⁶

63 What is religion? [online]. [accessed 2017-03-30]. http://atheisme.free.fr/Religion/What-is-religion- 1.htm

66 DITTRICHOVÁ, Lenka. Eutanazie a náboženství. Zlín: Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně, 2011, 59 p.

://hdl.handle.net/10563/20057. Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně. Fakulta humanitních studií, Katedra pedagogiky. Vedoucí práce Šigut, Zdeněk.

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According to Jewish tradition, the life is sacred and every human is accepted positively with all doubts. Nowadays, the focus of Jewish religion is still Torah.

Regarding to literature, Tanakh is the most important. Tanakh is a collection of sacred texts, written mostly in Hebrew. Tanakh is composed of 39 books and of 3 parts:⁶⁷

 Torah – the first five books of the Old Testament or the Pentateuch

 Nevi’im – books of the prophets; and

 Kentuvim – the remaining writings ⁶⁸

The Jewish medical ethic is based on clearly defined rules:

 Human is created by God, it means that life is sacred and dignified.

 The obligation of maintenance the health

 Disagreement with the myth, exorcizing etc.

 Code of hygiene measures⁶⁹

Jews perceive the life as a gift from God and they are the major defenders of life’s protection. They feel the unconditional obligation to maintain the life and they reject all compromises. They have the obligation of visiting seriously ill relatives. They come in order to console them and to pray.⁷⁰

The obligation of a doctor is to save the life. This obligation takes priority over all other commands. The only exception is a state when the death is excepted within 3

68 The Holy Books of Judaism [online]. [accessed 2017-03-30].

https://www.hobart.k12.in.us/ksms/worldreligions/Judaism/HolyBooks.htm

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days. If the patient’s state is hopeless, it is not recommended to spin out the life artificially, but the active expediting of death is illegal. It is considered as a murder.⁷¹

According to Jewish law, a doctor has an obligation to come and rescue the neighbour and execute any action for saving the life, despite the patient’s disapproval.

The death means sad, but inevitable end of a well-lived life. ⁷²

“With regard to active euthanasia, the Jewish position seems clear. Immanuel Jacobovitz said: “It is clear, then, that, even when the patient is already known to be on his deathbed and close to the end, any form of active euthanasia is strictly prohibited. In fact, it is condemned as plain murder. In purely legal terms, this is borne out by the ruling that anyone who kills a dying person is liable to the death penalty as a common murderer. At the same time, Jewish law sanctions, and perhaps even demands, the withdrawal of any factor – whether extraneous to the patient himself or not – which may artificially delay his demise in the final phase. It might be agued that this modification implies the legality of expending the death of an incurable patient in acute agony by withholding from him such medicaments as sustain his continued life by unnatural means. . . . Our sources advert only to cases in which death is expected to be imminent; it is, therefore, not altogether clear whether they would tolerate this moderate form of euthanasia, though that cannot be ruled out.” ⁷³

5.3 B

UDDHISM AND EUTHANASIA

Buddhism is a non-theistic religion that has its roots in India. The founder of Buddhism was Siddhārtha Gautama. He was the son of the ruler of small state at the foot of Himalayas. He lived in a comfort of the royal palace until the age of 29 years.

Based on meetings with extreme poverty, disease and suffering, he has decided to leave the palace, the current way of life, the wife and the son. He was looking for a ways to

72 DITTRICHOVÁ, Lenka. Eutanazie a náboženství. Zlín: Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně, 2011, 59 s.

Dostupné také z: http://hdl.handle.net/10563/20057. Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně. Fakulta humanitních studií, Katedra pedagogiky. Vedoucí práce Šigut, Zdeněk

73 LARUE, Gerald A. Euthanasia and religion: a survey of the attitudes of world religions to the right-to- die. Los Angeles: Hemlock Society, 1985. ISBN 0-9606030-3-4, p.19

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solve a human misery. He went through asceticism and meditation, where he found enlightenment. From that time on his name is Buddha.⁷⁴

The Buddha's first sermon after his Enlightenment was centered on the Four Noble Truths, which are the foundation of Buddhism. The truths are:

 The truth of suffering (dukkha)

 The truth of the cause of suffering (samudaya)

 The truth of the end of suffering (nirhodha)

 The truth of the path that frees us from suffering (magga)⁷⁵

Buddhists believe in a rebirth, which means that they can birth repeatedly at different levels of existence. The karma affects next life. This natural law means that all human actions will have the consequences, either immediately or in some future lives.

So, death is a stretch in the process of rebirth. The state of mind at the moment of death is also important. That may influence the character of the next birth. ⁷⁶

According to teachings of Buddhists, we should do everything to help the dying person cope with the worsening of health condition, pain and fear and offered him the loving support that gives sense to the end of life. ⁷⁷

Buddhism disapproves with euthanasia. One of the ethical principles is “Do not kill the living”. Generally, every life is sacred and the first principle of human behaviour should be to avoid the destruction of life. It is also necessary to deal with each case individually. The state of mind of dying person is important. It is necessary to consider whether the quality of the last days or hours is more important than keeping him alive if there is no hope of recovery. It is better to let a person die naturally. Euthanasia affects

74 DITTRICHOVÁ, Lenka. Eutanazie a náboženství. Zlín: Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně, 2011, 59 s.

Dostupné také z: http://hdl.handle.net/10563/20057. Univerzita Tomáše Bati ve Zlíně. Fakulta humanitních studií, Katedra pedagogiky. Vedoucí práce Šigut, Zdeněk

75 The Four Noble Truths: The Foundation of Buddhism [online]. [accessed 2017-04-01].

https://www.thoughtco.com/the-four-noble-truths-450095

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karma and motivation of all participating. If somebody will help to another person to avoid suffering, he still cannot avoid some form in the next life. ⁷⁸

“Zen Master Serng Sahn wrote regarding the Buddhist position: “Buddha said, Do not kill any life. Many machines and drugs are not necessary. Let all beings live in a natural way. When you die, where do you go?” Professor H. Uemura of Komozawa university in Tokyo, Japan, wrote concerning to attitude of Zen: Dōgen Zenji (1200- 1253), who is a famous Buddhist priest wrote about the Life and Death in his writing

“Shobogenzo.” A literal translation . . . follows:

When the Buddha exists in Life and Death, there is no Life and Death. Also, when the Buddha does not exist in Life and Death, anybody may not be puzzled about Life and Death.” I think the meaning in the first half of the sentence is “enlightening,” and in

the latter is “nothing.” . . .

The Life and Death is the great natural rule and truth. Of course, this is founded on the Buddhist idea that Life and Death are rotating alternately forever in this world.” ⁷⁹

So I think that it means that you must endeavour to experience the stage of Buddha, in order to jump over and emancipate from the Life and Death.

5.4 C

HRISTIANITY AND EUTHANASIA

Christianity is a monotheistic religion, which follows the Judaism. It is the most widespread and the fastest spreading religion. It was founded in 1^st – 2^nd century AD and it is associated with the figure of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was seen as the Son of God, the Prophet and Savior. He came from Galilee (part of Palestine) and he was approximately 30 years old, he became a healer of sick people and popular preacher. He announced the coming of God’s Kingdom.⁸⁰

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He was crucified in Jerusalem. For the establishment of Christianity is crucial the resurrection of Chris on Easter. It is annually celebrated. From the perspective of Christians, it is the beginning of eternal life. Christians believe that through Christ’s death may receive forgiveness of sins and his resurrection is a proof that death is not the end.⁸¹

After Jesus death, the followers began to spread the faith and at the end of the 2^nd century was established the Early Church. After a period of persecution, Christianity was legalized by Milan decree and became the official religion. Over time, there were differences of opinions between the leaders of the Church, which culminated in a split between the Latin-west and Greco-eastern Christianity. This gave a rise to two branches of Christianity – Catholic and Orthodox. During their development, there was a dissatisfaction and distrust towards the official church of believers, which resulted in the reform movement. There was a genesis of a variety of Protestant Church. ⁸²

Despite the differences, Christians agree that there is only one God. He is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient and he exist in three persons – the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit. The holy book is the Bible, which is the collection of liturgical texts, divided into two parts:

 The Old Testament – contains 39 books, written in Hebrew, this part is common for Jew

 The New Testament – written in Greek, has 27 books and 4 parts -Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, Epistles, Apocalypse (Revelation)⁸³

The Bible is the most widely read book in history. It is used for private and public worship and it draws on philosophy, literature, law and ethics. The issue of euthanasia is not expressly addressed, but we can infer it from various standpoints. It appeared already in the Ten Commandments: “Do not kill”. This commandment shows respect for life and resistance forcibly caused death. Accordion to Christian tradition, Šiler sees

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death as retribution for sin. The consolation is that human is not alone in death. Death is a condition to get into eternal life. ⁸⁴

Human is not the owner of his life, he is only the administrator and he must behave accordingly, because we will pay the accounts to God for our lifestyle. Likewise, we cannot give up our lives. In 2008, at the Congress in Vatican, the pope stressed the ethical negativity of euthanasia. On the contrary, according to him, the church should cooperate with civilian institutions and help to the seriously ill and their families. The whole society should respect the terminally ill and the dying persons and help them wait with the dignity until the moment of death. Doctors should respect human life at all stages.⁸⁵

Catechism of the Catholic Church states that is morally unacceptable. Sick and handicap people should be supported to lead a normal life. On the other hand, it is possible to interrupt intensive and costly medical procedures, if the intent will not be to cause the death, but it is recognized that the death is inevitable. Such a decision, however, must be done be done by the patient, if it is possible.⁸⁶

Tomáš Halík, president of the Czech Christian Academy, said: “The argument that humans have the right to decide about their life is a mistake, we did not give the life, life is a gift. We have received it as a gift and task. ⁸⁷

The death and euthanasia commented also John Paul II in his encyclical, which is called: “Evangelium vitae”. It points out that one of the features of contemporary society is that a growing number of elderly and sick is a nuisance. Progress in medicine allows doctors to control the pain and prolongs life, but it also can be an attraction for those who would like to control your life and plan their end of life. According to him,

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the legalization of euthanasia will be actually approved a murder (suicide), which contradicts to civil law and the basic principles of respect for life.⁸⁸

5.5 I

SLAM AND EUTHANASIA

Islam is one of the youngest major religions originated in the 6th century AD in today’s Saudi Arabia. The followers of Islam are called Muslims. Islam is one of the largest religions in the world, with over 1 billion followers. It is a monotheistic faith based on revelations received by the Prophet Muhammad in 7th-century Saudi Arabia.

The Arabic word Islam means “submission,” reflecting the faith's central tenet of submitting to the will of God. ⁸⁹

“According to Islamic tradition, the angel Gabriel appeared to the Prophet over the course of 20 years, revealing to him many messages from God. Muslims recognize some earlier Judeo-Christian prophets—including Moses and Jesus—as messengers of of the same true God. But in Islam, Muhammad is the last and greatest of the prophets, whose revelations alone are pure and uncorrupted. The Prophet dedicated the remainder of his life to spreading a message of monotheism in a polytheistic world. In 622, he fled north to the city of Medina to escape growing persecution. This event marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Eight years later, Muhammad returned to Mecca with an army and conquered the city for Islam. By Muhammad's death, 50 years later, the entire Arabian Peninsula had come under Muslim control. The sacred text of Islam, the Qur'an, was written in Arabic within 30 years of Muhammad's death. Muslims believe it contains the literal word of God. Also important is the tradition of the sayings and actions of Muhammad and his companions, collected in the Hadith.”⁹⁰

Islamic practices center on the Five Pillars of Islam:

 Faith

 Prayer

 Fasting

90 Islam. ReligionFacts [online]. [accessed 2017-04-01]. http://www.religionfacts.com/islam

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 Pilgrimade to Mecca

 Alms⁹¹

Islamic morality places great emphasis on the family and its values. So, Muslims are obligated to take care for their loved ones until the last moment. For this reason, practically there were no nursing homes and similar institutions. The dying persons lie with their face turned to Mecca and their own death is seen as a separation of the soul from the body. A suicide is a serious offense in Islam and Muslims are strongly against to euthanasia. They believe that life is sacred, because it was given by Allah and only Allah can decide how long a person will live. No person can intervene in. ⁹²

In Islam, there is also the general principle that if they want to eliminate a problem and they know that we could worsen it, they must not to do so. This principle could be applied to the issue of euthanasia. In case of the enactment of euthanasia, it could happen that we must to solve whether used it in other cases, not only in cases when patients are in the end stage of life.⁹³

“At the meeting of the Fifth World Congress of Right-to-Die Societies held in Nice, France in September, 1984, Dr Mohammed Ali, a Muslim scholar from London, England, explained the basis for Islamic opposition. Ha stated that, according to Islamic teachings, an individual’s moment of death is foreordained: “His birth and his death are already recorded – that is, who will born and how he is to die.” Clearly, euthanasia constitutes an interference with the divine plan.”⁹⁴

“Dr Ali referred to the 17^th Surah of the Koran which reads: Glory to Him (Allah) Who carried his servant (Mohammed) by night from the Sacred Mosque (Mecca) to the